Poke Plus Opens in Former Liberty Travel Location

 

Walked by this place today and it was already pretty busy. The location is 107-15 71st. Road in Forest Hills, a few doors down from Mighty Quinn's BBQ. 

Catching Up

Does anyone have any good experiences at the new food places around?  I'm way behind in trying them.  Here are a few pics to get the ball rolling:

I Like Donuts

There, I've said it and I'm not taking it back.  I like donuts.  Now if there were just a new place coming that sold them...  Wait, there is - welcome Ugly Donuts to the neighborhood!  Here's hoping they're delish (and the corn dogs too)!!

New Spots That Have Opened Or Are Getting Ready To

 Let's get caught up. 

There's news of another Trader Joe's coming in to where the old Key Food used to be near Gerard Towers, south of Queens Blvd. 

And personally, I'm eagerly awaiting Mighty Quinn's, the new rib place going in to where Banter used to be. 

A couple of other new places that have sustained me during the tumult of the past several months:

The new Indian place, Tikka N Talk, on Austin. Really good.

And the new burrito place, Homemade Taqueria, also on Austin Street. Awesome place!

And then there are these guys getting ready to open on Austin Street soon:

Stacked Sandwich Shop Now Open on Austin Street

A new sandwich shop called Stacked recently opened on Austin Street, down towards the police station.  I believe it occupies the space of a dry cleaners that closed a while back.  Can't wait to try it out!

Austin Street Pizza Begins Online Ordering

 

A recent line outside of the new Austin Street Pizza.

Austin Street Pizza, the new pizza place at  the corner of Austin Street and 72nd Avenue in Forest Hills, has updated its website with its full menu and online ordering for pickup only as of now. I saw somewhere that they are planning delivery soon. This new place, with an extremely enticing, innovative menu, is open from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. 

Austin Street Pizza's Menu

 Austin Street Pizza is now open for business. I was pleasantly surprised to find their menu really innovative. Smart move for them to be distinguishing  themselves from all the other pizza places in the area with such inventive offerings.

This new place is located at the corner of Austin Street and 72nd Avenue in Forest Hills and is open from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Their phone number is (347)809-4195.

Coming Soon!

Some good news for a change.  Two new eateries are coming to Austin Street soon.  A pizzeria and a chicken place, both on the same block as Bareburger. Mad For Chicken, a Korean fried chicken place, will occupy the space of A&J Pizza/Hinoki.  Austin Street Pizza replaces Bagriculture.   

Station House Launches Direct Delivery

 Coming on the horrible news about Banter's closing, this great news about Station House opening up their spectacularly delicious, innovative takes on pub cuisine to direct delivery cannot come soon enough. 

 

The Good News and the Very Bad News

 The good news, especially for those who live in the largely residential area to the north of Queens Blvd. in the center of the neighborhood: You're getting a new Starbucks, right next to the 71st Continental Ave. subway stop, between the new bank and the CVS. Here's some pics of the outside and inside under construction. I heard that the Starbucks on the southside of 71st Continental will be closing, but that is not confirmed yet. 

And the Very Bad News - Banter, probably the neighborhood's best all-around restaurant, has permanently closed. I was crushed to learn of this. I know they had recently even tried building some major barriers inside the place to allow for safe indoor seating. So, it seems like they were giving it their all but just couldn't hold on any longer because of the challenges the pandemic has presented. I loved this place so much. It will be hard to replace it. I only hope when the pandemic begins to end five or six months from now, the owners think about opening something new in the neighborhood. 

Prince Tea House Coming to Forest Hills

 New restaurant coming to Station Square soon.  Sounds very fanciful!

Update: Prince Tea House is a chain of Asian-inspired cafes with a wide-ranging menu of food, light snacks, and of course tea. The chain has other locations in Flushing, Astoria, the East Village, Brooklyn, and soon to come, Philadelphia.

The Forest Hills location is coming to 15 Station Square, where I think there was a cleaners before? But let me know at edgeofthecity@gmail.com or in the comments below. 

New Restaurant in Former Jack & Nellie's Space

Here's the new restaurant, White Radish American Kitchen, that is going into the former Jack & Nellie's space on Ascan. They have an outdoor seating area on the street that is being constructed as well. 

Forest Hills Restaurants During the Pandemic

Local restaurants have been struggling through the past few months and now some have some welcomed relief in the form of outdoor seating. Some local favorites, unfortunately, have not made it through the hard times. If you have any additional local restaurant updates, feel free to put them in the comments section below or email them to edgeofthecity@gmail.com.

Restaurant Row has expanded its always-popular outdoor dining further out into the street.

It's cool to see local restaurants really doing nice things with their new outdoor seating during the pandemic. Such as this cozy little spot for T-Bone Diner along Queens Blvd.

The always excellent Banter has recently reopened thanks to its outdoor seating area. 

A crowd waits in line to get some of La Boulangerie's delicacies. 

The excellent Nick's Pizza advertising curbside pickup and home delivery.

Portofino's outdoor seating area along Ascan Ave.

The amazing Italian restaurant Tuscan Hills, one of the best local restaurants in Forest Hills, has set up outdoor seating along Queens Blvd.

Unfortunately, the recently-opened RenWen Noodle Factory had to close its doors. It was one of the finest new additions to Forest Hills' thriving culinary scene and I hope it finds a way to return.

The fine little restaurant Jack & Nellie's also had to shutter on Ascan. 

La Rotisserie Du Coin's Menu

I was told Forest Hills' new French restaurant, La Rotisserie Du Coin, at 107-10 71st Road, will be opening this weekend. Here's the menu, and a peek inside...

New French Restaurant Revealed

The new French bistro La Rotisserie Du Coin is opening soon on 71st Road between Austin Street and Queens Blvd. See my previous post for a peek inside. It's a cute new place and I'm very much looking forward to trying it!

New French Restaurant Opening in Forest Hills

I am not quite sure of the specifics, and whether this place will be another French bakery or an actual restaurant, but this cute spot is coming in a few weeks to 71st Road. I think, but am not sure, it's in the location where the cleaners that moved across the street used to be. Anyway, I am impressed by the look of the place and look forward to learning more! Email edgeofthecity@gmail.com if you have any additional details!

The Land of Secret Salads

Long-term readers of this blog will know that I've been advocating for more places that offer quick, healthy food options in Forest Hills for quite some time. My hopes reached a pinnacle several years ago when I was contacted by one of the make-your-own salad chains with many stores in Manhattan about their interest in finding a suitable location in our neighborhood. Their interest lasted several months before they apparently gave up. I was never told why.

Since then, the availability of such healthier fare has come in fits and starts in Forest Hills. And now, the latest incarnation of it is rather clever, in my opinion. 

Since we did have a couple of small independent dedicated make-your-own salad restaurants open and then close several years ago, it seems either by strategy or just by coincidence this food option is now seeing a resurgence along Austin Street, albeit tucked away as often hard-to-discover parts of pre-existing businesses. It seems these store owners are not quite ready to trust Forest Hills residents at wanting much more than the calorie-laden pastries or ethnic cuisines that we are overflowing with. Thus, we all live in New York City's only Land of Secret Salads. The option is being offered by these places, often shyly and quietly, without the risk of financial failure that comes with a standalone shop. 

The latest option to join Natural's make-your-own salad bar, and other pre-made salad options available from the coffee shops, diners, Ripe and La Boulangerie, is a bit bolder, however. It even has its own name and sign!

I-CE-NY, the ice cream place next to Shake Shack on Austin Street, is now apparently also "efresh", offering a variety of soups, wraps, bowls, smoothies, and yes, customizable, make-your-own salads. I recently tried one of these salads and it was great - nice and fresh and tasty.  It's an extremely clever move by I-CE-NY, and I think they might just find it ends up eclipsing their ice cream business, as the demand for healthier food options remains quite high in Forest Hills. I discovered the place by finding their menu at NYSC. Another smart move to put it there so fit-conscious local residents can learn about it. (It would have been even smarter, by the way, if they had contacted their local blog, Edge of the City at edgeofthecity@gmail.com, but that's another story.) Kudos to I-CE-NY for understanding what Forest Hills really needs and being smart enough to provide it!